love others Archives | Heavenly Homemakers

Staring straight into the unknown future? Afraid? Insecure? Doubtful? Listen to these inspired words of truth from Tasha:

Dear fellow moms (and wives and husbands),

The future is heavy on my mind lately. Who am I kidding, I am always thinking about the future; it’s hard for me to settle down and enjoy the moment. It’s a problem, part of my personality, and a topic for another day. TODAY, I’ve been thinking even more about the future because it is uncertain. More so than it was a few months ago.

In hindsight, nothing about this life is ever certain. God doesn’t promise us sunshiny days and roses. But we get comfortable in our routines and seasons. We know what to expect from day to day. For most of us, dealing with our own emotions and taming our own tongues was enough to keep us busy. And now we have kids who can’t go see their friends at soccer practice, husbands teaching from the basement, family members having babies and we can’t go visit, Grandparents in nursing homes and we can’t see them. And I’m left confused about the future.

What will the rest of 2020 look like? What will 2021 look like?

I woke up to the baby crying out suddenly during the night. My heart pounded and I was short of breath from a nightmare I’d been pulled from. I was being led in a long line of other women by men with guns. A dystopian future. Thankfully, this was a younger, pre-motherhood version of myself and I didn’t have any of my children with me to protect. I can’t even imagine that type of fear. None of us knew where we were being led. We didn’t know anything about the situation except we were in danger and unable to fight against it. In my dream, I fervently prayed over and over, “God send a rescuer, God please send a rescuer, send a rescuer…”

When the baby startled me, in the moments between dreamlife and the darkness of my bedroom with the glowing monitor, I distinctly, clearly, had the thought: He already did.

God already sent the rescuer.

He already won the war. He laid out the path for us to follow. Jesus is the light that came into the world. He shines in the darkness and that light will not be overcome. (John 1:5) My future is secure. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, (neither a virus, nor quarantine and a struggling economy), nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:38)

My dreams last night were discouraging, to say the least. Resurging today are memories from nine years ago when I was directly threatened at gunpoint, I have legitimate fears of being out of control and alone, I do not like to feel powerless, or trapped. And yet, even my subconscious, when drowning in those feelings calls out to God to be saved. It swells my heart to know that even when I think I’m not trusting God enough, I actually am.

I’m reminded of the father in Mark 9 who said to Jesus, “I do believe, but help me overcome my unbelief.” Do you relate?

Can you believe and not believe at the same time?

Apparently we can. It’s possible to have fears of the future and yet trust God to save us. I’m not saying we should stay and wallow in that fear. Yikes, no way.

The future may seem uncertain, but maybe we’re just not looking far enough ahead. Today I want to encourage you to fill your mind and heart up with the truth of God’s love. Read encouraging books, talk to encouraging people, write encouraging words. If you don’t know where to start, read all of Romans 8. And then read it again.

Will you share something encouraging with a friend or neighbor today? Write a letter, make a call, send an email, or reach out on social media. They might need to be reminded of something wonderful more than you know.

Love,

Tasha

Tasha, friend of Laura, loves to read good books and talk to good people and write good things. She daily falls short of the glory of God and is graciously covered by the son of the creator of the universe. Neat, right? When she’s not guest blogging for Laura about how you can survive anything, and how she paid off a bunch of debt, she can be found buying googly eyes for her kid’s crafts, folding laundry that will then sit on the couch for three days, and sneaking homemade cookie dough from the freezer.

Beyond the Free Range Chicken

Today I’d like to share with you how far God has taken me in a different direction during the past few years in regard to the free range chicken.

Yes, I still prefer to serve my family grass fed beef and free range poultry. Yes, I love my organic greens. Truly, I can tell the difference in cage free eggs compared to regular store bought.

But none of this – not any of it – matters when I look beyond all that is physical and earthly into what I believe God asks us to focus on for His Kingdom purposes.

Perhaps I could restate this by re-writing my own version of 1 Corinthians 13: If I have a perfectly raised, free range chicken, but have not love, I am nothing but a conscientious cook whose meat is free of antibiotics. If I have dozens of cage free eggs, a refrigerator full of organically grown produce, and a freezer filled with grass fed beef, but have not love, I am nothing.

But then, of course, I’d need to switch back to the actual words from this passage once we get to verse four: “Love is patient. Love is kind. Love does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud…”

A couple years ago, Matt and I asked God to show us what it really means to “Love God and love our neighbor.” He has been faithful to teach us and in short, we’ve learned that true love looks a lot different than inviting people into a perfectly clean house so that we can serve them grass fed pot roast with a side of organic carrots.

God’s love looks like seeing people who are often overlooked. It looks like listening to people who are lonely. As of late, for Matt and me, love looks like spending time with new friends who just got out of prison and are determined to make a new life for themselves in Jesus. It looks like forming relationships with recovering addicts who are letting God be at the heart of their transformation and healing. It looks like hearing people’s stories, sharing our own stories, and being completely open to letting the Holy Spirit lead our days.

As God has been gently changing my heart focus, the quality of my chicken matters less and less to me.

I absolutely do still care about nourishment and believe that we should be caring for our bodies well so that we can love others well. But if you’ve noticed an extreme shift in my recipes and food encouragement that has taken us from spending hours in the kitchen to keeping our food as simple as possible, this is why.

God’s people matter more than free range chicken. Loving others in the name of Jesus trumps all.

What should this love and outreach look like from one home to another? Only God has the answer to this question. Ask and you shall receive. This is guaranteed by Jesus himself.

So where does this leave our beloved free range chicken? It all depends on what God provides for each day. His ways are perfect, His provision is flawless, and we can rest peacefully knowing that we can trust Him completely.